Commentaries
Some advice from America’s only Catholic founding father
A historian looks at the life of Charles Carroll, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and find eight tips for Catholics to navigate the politics of today, with many of the same issues still in play.
Whether here or there, it’s all our house
Maureen Pratt reflects on going to Mass at another church in the summer, and the opportunities to meet people who open their churches to us, building subtle, spirit-filled bridges as we come and go.
Separation from morality
There are not two sides to the issue of separating parents from children at the U.S.-Mexico border. It is immoral, says a guest editorial. The administration's goal of reforming immigration policy does not justify the means.
Taking the public health crisis of suicide seriously
The U.S. suicide rate jumped 30 percent from 1996 to 2016, writes Richard Doerflinger but it's much higher in states permitting assisted suicide, not counting the states' "aid in dying" cases.
God asks us to embrace social media to make his presence known
The power of digital networks cannot be underestimated in the lives of today's young people, writes Sarah Yaklic. If the church would meet them and become their companions, we'd better run -- not sit and wait for them.
When it seems things are falling apart, look to the margins
What's happening to us? asks writer Effie Caldarola: White House staffers are being kicked out of restaurants, entertainers hurl obscenities at the president, and immigrants are dehumanized from the top.
June’s Supreme Court rulings: Free speech, bad speech and freedom
A University of Notre Dame professor looks at how the Supreme Court condemned California's attempt to coerce speech about abortion, and how President Trump abused his power to speak but was within his rights to act.
The church needs not clout, but gift of contemplative monasteries
It's tempting to withdraw into alarmist speculation about the church in a changing Western culture, but Father Eric Banecker points to contemplative prayer as the way the church can respond to the Holy Spirit in our times.
Understand the three enemies of kindness, and conquer them
Kindness is being well-disposed toward our self, neighbors, world, government, church and God. Father Eugene Hemrick shows how resolving conflicts starts with identifying the desire to dominate, resentfulness and envy.
Trauma of family separation has long-term impacts on kids
Cabrini University professor and childhood trauma expert Colleen Lelli looks at the psychological and physical effects of extreme stress on children, especially those separated from their parents.